CHICAGO: Omar El-Dafrawy says it was “an honor” to represent Arab MMA at PFL Chicago after he needed just 1 minute,12 seconds to knock out James Vake in the first round and move to a 15-6 record, as well as welterweight-title conversation.
The victorious fighter spoke to Arab News about his pride just days after his win on the April 11 card at Wintrust Arena in Chicago, where PFL had positioned the event under Sergio Pettis vs. Mitch McKee.
The finish fit the story El-Dafrawy had been building before the event. He entered Chicago as the 2024 PFL MENA welterweight champion, a fighter who had rebuilt his run with wins over Anthony Zeidan, Jarrah Al-Selawe, and Mohammad Alaqraa to claim that belt.
Over Alaqraa, he recorded a second-round technical knockout at 0:57, a result that capped a seven-fight surge at that stage and established him as a key name from the promotion’s Middle East and North Africa expansion.
Against Vake, that momentum carried over fast. El-Dafrawy sparked Vake with a sharp left hand in the opening round.
“Twenty seconds in the fight I felt that I can put him out straight away; before the fight I had a strong feeling it was going to be early,” El-Dafrawy said.
“I know on the feet at the highest levels many will struggle with my left hand and I know I’m much more experienced than him so once I found the opening I made the decision and got it done.”
For El-Dafrawy, the result carried weight beyond the record. Before the fight, he had spoken at length about being the lone Arab fighter on the Chicago card.
“It means a lot to me I’m very thankful, very happy about the win,” he said.
“It’s a responsibility to be representing that part of the world, it’s an honor to hold up the name of the Arabs. And I will keep doing it until we prove to the world that we have some savages from that part of the world.”
That message lands with more force because El-Dafrawy has already become one of the main Arab names produced by PFL MENA through his title run and knockout wins in the region.
“What’s next for me is enjoy the win get back to training next week and see what the rankings will look like in the next couple of weeks and just for a title run and fight for that title soon,” he said.
